Chapter 95: Bloody Battlefield

  "Not bad, with cavalry against infantry, the odds of winning are quite high." Tai Shi Ci was secretly delighted in his heart, he didn't expect that there would be such a talented person under his command, who actually understood the way of offense and defense, now he could finally relax a bit.

  Taishi Ci continued to ask: "Is there any other way besides this?"

  Hao Zhao immediately replied: "Yes!"

  "Speak!" Tai Shi Ci couldn't help but take another glance at Hao Zhao, secretly thinking that he was lucky this guy was one of his own soldiers. If not, then even he would have had a hard time dealing with the "Snowfilling Palm", let alone the fact that this guy had more than just one trick up his sleeve.

  Hao Zhao briefly considered the words and replied: "Meng Huo can use cavalry, prepare with ropes, tie a section of rope to a steel hook, hang the steel hook on the wooden material of the city wall, pull it with horse force, or destroy the city wall. In addition, Meng Huo can also build a high platform, shoot and injure our soldiers with bows and arrows, take a step-by-step approach, and gradually get closer to our army."

  "Is there a way to crack it?" Tai Shi asked hastily.

  Hao Zhao smiled slightly and replied in a low voice: "It is possible to arrange for soldiers with steel knives to cut off the ropes, so as not to be caught off guard. If the enemy builds a high platform, the general can also use the same method to block it, and can also use cavalry to launch a surprise attack and kill the soldiers building the platform, all of which are ways to defeat the enemy."

  "Very good!" Tai Shi Cai nodded and suddenly asked: "Hao Zhao, how is your martial arts?"

  Hao Zhao heard this, immediately stood up straight and replied loudly: "I report to the General, Hao Zhao has been practicing martial arts since childhood. Although I am not as brave as the General, I can compete with Sui Guo and Yang Ju."

  "Hao Zhao!" Taishi Ci shouted in a deep voice.

  "Yes!" Hao Zhao was taken aback and hastily replied.

  Tai Shi's expression turned cold and stern, his voice low as he said: "Hao Zhao, I am now appointing you as the leader of 500 men, to assist me in defending Yin Feng Gorge. Do you understand?"

  Hao Zhao hastily knelt down on one knee, clasped his fists and replied: "General Hao Zhao, at your command!"

  Some families are happy, some families worry. The situation here is not bad for Taishi Ci, but Wei Yan and Yang Quan immediately started blaming each other. Wei Yan blamed Yang Quan for not working hard (in fact, it was true), which affected the battle results. Yang Quan, on the other hand, blamed Wei Yan for being timid and afraid of trouble, failing to capture Taishi Ci, resulting in all previous efforts being wasted.

  The quarrel between the two men gradually escalated, turning into verbal abuse and sarcasm. Zhang Gong cursed Yang Chou as a "household dog" who could only rely on others for survival, while Yang Chou cursed Zhang Gong as a "treacherous thief" who knew no shame... The insults flew back and forth, and the two were about to draw their swords at each other, with both sides' personal soldiers rushing forward, almost leading to an on-the-spot showdown.

  At a critical moment, it was Zhang Yang's dispatched army advisor who came up with good words of persuasion, which finally made the two put down their swords.

  However, as a result, both Yu Ji and Yang Xiu did not have the heart to attack Taishi Ci's camp, and they remained stagnant for several days, competing with each other.

  Xu Shu remained calm and still in the camp, but Tai Shi Ci was frightened. He feared that Xu Shu would come up with a clever attack strategy and catch him off guard. Therefore, Tai Shi Ci hastily summoned Hao Zhao to discuss matters.

  Hao Zhao could not have guessed that Yang Chou and Sui Guo were at odds with each other, and was also in a fog, so he could only advise Taishi Ci to strengthen the defense line, just in case. As a result, Taishi Ci's camp turned into a large construction site, soldiers cutting wood everywhere, reinforcing the walls, building towers, etc.

  When Zhang Fei and Yang Feng had almost finished their quarrel, Taishi Ci's camp was already fortified like a strong fortress, impervious to wind and rain.

  It was not that Sui Gong and Yang Chou had reconciled, but rather the two scouts they sent out crossed over the high mountains of Yinfeng Valley to reach Langmen County, wanting to investigate the military situation. Due to Li Zhong's army surrounding Langmen, the scouts were unable to enter the city, so they returned to Yinfeng Valley and reported the general situation back to Sui Gong.

  Li Ji heard that Li had an army of over 10,000 people and suddenly felt anxious in his heart. He was afraid that Langya County would be lost and couldn't care about Yang's evil place anymore. He hurriedly called Yang to come and discuss matters, discussing how to break through Taishi Ci's camp.

  However, the two of them did not have Hao Zhao's brains and thought that using the old method was still the best. They decided to find someone to entangle Taishi Ci while the other led the troops to break through Taishi Ci's defense line. However, neither of them was willing to fight Taishi Ci, so they drew lots to decide.

  This time, the unlucky one was still Sui Gong, and Yang Chou couldn't help but laugh with a "heh heh".

  This time, Xu Shu sent out three thousand soldiers to attack Taishi Ci. He himself held a seven-layered cowhide shield in one hand and a steel knife in the other, standing at the forefront, while Yang Chou held a long spear and stood behind Xu Shu.

  "Kill..." Meng Zhang shouted loudly and led the charge forward.

  Taishi Ci had long been prepared, and seeing Xiahou Yuan fully armed, he knew that he was going to take the field personally. Taishi Ci let out a cold laugh, standing on the city wall, waiting for Xiahou Yuan to come and deliver himself to death.

  Through the flying arrows, Zhang Liao quickly climbed up the wall and fought with Taishi Ci. Zhang Liao's martial arts were not as good as Taishi Ci's, but he was similar to Liao Hua. However, Zhang Liao had a clear understanding of his own abilities and did not hope to defeat Taishi Ci. He adopted the turtle flow tactic, holding a large shield to block back and forth. If he was really pressed by Taishi Ci, he would jump down from the wall and deal with Taishi Ci together with his personal soldiers, which could also hold on for a while.

  Yang Chou saw that Sui Guo had tied up Taishi Ci, and immediately jumped onto the city wall, wanting to kill his way out. However, he was already being targeted by Hao Zhao, and before he could react, he was killed by Hao Zhao, sweating profusely.

  The two of them were entangled, and the attacking soldiers had no one to command them. The formation suddenly became chaotic, and they didn't know whether to advance or retreat. They were killed by the defending army in a state of disarray, and before long, several incomplete corpses were left under the city wall.

  In less than a stick of incense time, Hua Wuji was the first to lose support, feeling his whole body go soft and powerless. Helpless, he had no choice but to jump down from the wall and flee in disarray, shouting "Retreat!"

  Yang Chou did not gain the upper hand and seeing Sui Guo flee, he naturally would not fight alone either. He turned around and jumped down from the city wall, fleeing in a hurry.

  But this time it wasn't just a matter of Sima Yi wanting to withdraw his troops, as Taishi Ci had already left a gap in the wall, and 500 cavalrymen who had been lying in wait poured out, brandishing their gleaming steel blades and charging at the enemy.

  Taishi Ci also mounted a war horse, attempting to chase after Sikou. He was outrun by Sikou twice in succession, and Taishi Ci felt a surge of anger in his heart.

  Cavalry pursuing and killing your routed infantry is a massacre, every swing of the steel blade brings out a burst of fresh blood, from time to time there are heads brought up by the steel blade soaring into the sky, headless corpses with blood gushing like a fountain on their necks, soldiers who were lucky enough to avoid the blade could not avoid the heavy hooves, and in the blink of an eye they were trampled into pulp, the cries of agony and despair are endless.

  Five hundred cavalrymen swept by, bringing a bloody storm, trampling the crimson ground and returning to their camp, leaving behind a scene of hell on earth in front of the city walls.

  In the sky, countless crows circled around, and the thick bloody smell attracted them from all directions. Some bolder crows had landed on the ground, picking up scattered human flesh and making triumphant cries, "Ga... Ga..." The sound echoed through the valley, dry and suffocating, like the howls of devils in hell.